Spinner ratchet wrench

ABSTRACT

A spinner ratchet wrench (10) having a normal ratcheting capability and a free-spinning mode used to easily and quickly pre-tighten a nut or bolt (device) prior to final tightening or to remove a device after it is initially loosened. This feature does not require the handle (18) to be oscillated and is particularly useful when devices are located in areas where finger manipulation is difficult or impossible. Free-spinning is achieved by a combination of a three-position pawl (22a) that includes a neutral position as well as the two standard ratchet positions, and a spinner drive shaft (18a) having at opposite ends a primary bevel gear (18b) and a spin knob (18p). When the pawl (22a) is placed in neutral it is disengaged from the ratchet gear (16f) allowing the shaft (18a) to be directly rotated by the knob (18p). As the shaft turns the primary bevel gear (18b) turns a secondary bevel gear (16d) connected to the socket shank (16k).

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention pertains to the general field of ratchet wrenches and moreparticularly to a wrench having conventional ratcheting capability aswell as a free-spinning mode.

BACKGROUND ART

Ratchet wrenches having a mechanism for changing the direction of torquehave been well known in the art for many years. Additionally,combination wrenches employing conventional ratcheting capability aswell as a rotary movement of the socket shank that is independent of anoscillation of the handle have also been disclosed. The rotary movement,or as also referred to as a free-spinning mode, is used to eitherpre-tighten a nut or bolt until it becomes finger tight or to remove anut or bolt after it has been broken loose by the ratchet section of thewrench.

Many of the patents disclosing wrenches with independent rotary motiondescribe complex mechanical designs requiring that a plurality of rotarydrive elements, including the ratchet gear, be operated to produce therequired free-spinning mode. Because of this mechanical complexity, therotary drive may cause the wrench to bind or it may disengage under loadfrom the drive mechanism causing a work stoppage and/or require a wrenchrepair. Additionally, the wrench wear-out rate is higher and it is moreexpensive to manufacture and maintain.

A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that readdirectly on the claims of the instant invention. However, the followingU. S. patents are considered related and indicative of the state-of-the-art:

    ______________________________________                                        PATENT       INVENTOR       ISSUED                                            ______________________________________                                        4,318,314    Furedi, E., et al                                                                            9 March 1982                                      4,277,989    Tracy, K.      14 July 1981                                      4,086,829    Hudgins, J.    2 May 1978                                        3,733,936    Flynn, W.      22 May 1973                                       ______________________________________                                    

The Furedi patent discloses a ratchet wrench assembly that is used tounthread or thread a loosened nut or bolt from a threaded shaft. Thewrench is comprised of a barrel assembly that includes a clutchingmechanism that is connected to the drive shaft. Thus, rotation of thebarrel assembly causes the drive shaft to rotate which, in turn, causesthe drive stud to subsequently rotate in a responsive rotationaldirection.

The Tracy patent discloses a reversible ratchet wrench handle in whichthe actuator for the direction reversing mechanism is located close tothe handle that is grasped by the user. This location permits the userto operate the actuator with the thumb of the hand holding the handle.Thus, changing the direction of operation of the wrench is a one handedrather than a two handed operation.

The Hudgins patent discloses a ratchet wrench having a rotationalhand-grip speed-handle located around the wrench handle. A drive meansis included within the handle that connects the hand-grip to the ratchetmeans located in the wrench head. The rotation of a nut or bolt isachieved by rotating the speed-handle about its own axis. This featuremay be used for final tightening or after the nut or bolt has beenbroken loose and is being unthreaded for removal. Thus, the wrench maybe used in a conventional manner for exerting maximum torque force orused in a screw-driver fashion when only minimum force is required.

The Flynn patent discloses a wrench having both a ratchet drive and ahigh speed gear drive that is connected to and activated by a rotationalhand-grip. To apply a nut to a stud, the nut is initially placed in thesocket attached to the shank. The hand-grip is then rotated whichtransmits the rotational movement of the hand-grip to the nut via ashaft, gears and the socket shank. When the nut is relatively tight, theforce of hand hand-grip is released and the wrench handle is oscillatedback and forth to effect a normal ratchet operation. To remove a nut,the above steps are reversed, the ratchet being used to loosen the nutuntil it turns freely and then the hand-grip is rotated to finishremoving the nut.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The spinner ratchet wrench in addition to having a normal ratchetingcapability also includes a free-spinning mode that is achieved withouthaving the pawl engage the ratchet gear. The free-spinning mode is usedto easily and quickly pre-tighten a nut or bolt prior to finaltightening or to remove a nut or bolt after it has been broken loose.This feature is particularly useful when a nut or bolt is located in anarea where removal of the nut or bolt by the finger would be difficultif not impossible.

The free-spinning mode is achieved by a combination of parts thatincludes a three-position pawl that has a neutral position as well asthe normal loosening and tightening positions and a spinner shaft. Thespinner shaft has on its front end a primary bevel gear that drives asecondary bevel gear attached to the socket shank and an integral spinknob on its opposite end that is used to manually rotate the shaft. Theshaft and primary bevel gear are housed within the wrench handle andhead housing with the spin knob extending behind the handle.

To place the wrench into the free-spinning mode the three-position pawlis placed in the neutral position by means of an easily accessiblelever. When in neutral, the pawl is disengaged from the ratchet gearwhich allows the spinner shaft to rotate freely and subsequentlydirectly rotate the socket shank in response to the rotation of the spinknob. Note that the spinning mode does not require the wrench handle tobe oscillated back and forth which is important when the area beingworked does not have sufficient lateral clearance to easily allow thewrench handle to be moved.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a free-spinning modethat can be easily and quickly set and that is accomplished by a directpower transfer from the primary bevel gear on the spinner shaft to thesecondary bevel gear driving the socket shank. At no time during thefree-spinning mode is the pawl or ratchet gear operative. In addition tothis primary object the following additional objects are also consideredrelevant:

to provide a design that is not cumbersome to use and that feels "good"to the user,

to provide a three-position pawl that is easily and positively set inthe selectable position,

to provide a wrench design having a simple free-spinning drive that willnot bind or be disengaged under load,

to provide a wrench that will help prevent burns to the hands whenworking on hot parts such as those found in confined areas of anautomobile engine,

to provide a wrench that can be adapted to use commercially availablesockets,

to provide a wrench that is cost effective to manufacture and that isreliable and easy to maintain in the event of a malfunction.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the subsequent detailed description of thepreferred embodiment and the claims taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The details of the invention are described in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the improved spinner ratchet wrench.

FIG. 2 is a cut-away side view of the preferred embodiment of thewrench.

FIG. 3 is a sectional top view taken along lines 3--3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a cut-away side view of an alternate method of attaching thespin knob to the spinner drive shaft.

FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5C are top views of the three-position pawl and theratchet gear showing the normal ON-OFF ratcheting position and thecenter NEUTRAL position.

FIG. 6 is a cut-away view showing the clutch assembly in the engagedposition.

FIG. 7 is a cut-away view showing the clutch assembly in the disengagedposition.

FIG. 8 is an exploded view of the overall wrench in the embodiment thatincludes the clutch assembly.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the back clutch plate/spin knob with afixed male detent.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The best mode for carrying out the improved spinner ratchet wrench 10 ispresented in terms of a generic preferred embodiment and a secondembodiment that modifies the generic design by the addition of a clutchassembly 20. The wrench 10 in the preferred embodiment, as best shown inFIGS. 1 through 3, is comprised of the following six major elements: afront housing 12, a handle 14, a bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly 16, aspinner drive assembly 18, a three-position pawl assembly 22 and a headhousing cover 24.

The front housing 12 houses the bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly 16, theprimary bevel gear 18b and the three-position pawl assembly 22. Withinthe housing there is included a first housing cavity 12a that extendsnormal to the longitudinal axis of the wrench as shown in FIGS. 1 and 8.The bottom surface 12m of this first cavity has a set of housing coverthreaded bores 12g and its wall thickness and configuration is designedto accommodate the head housing cover 24.

After the first housing cavity 12a is completed a second housing cavity12b that extends below the first cavity is machined as best shown inFIG. 2. The second cavity is comprised of the following wall placementsand corresponding bores and cavities: a pawl lower shaft cavity 12cextending normal through an upper horizontal wall 12h; a bevelgear/socket shank bore cavity 12d extending normal through a lowerhorizontal wall 12i; a pawl ball-detent bore 12e extending normalthrough an upper vertical wall 12j; and a spinner drive shaft bore 12fextending normal through a lower vertical wall 12k. The surfaces of thecavities 12c, 12d serve as bearing surfaces for their respectiverotational elements.

The front housing 12 is covered by means of a head housing cover 24dimensioned to flushly and tightly fit into the first housing cavity 12.The cover, as best shown in FIG. 9, has a pawl upper shaft bore 24a thatis in alignment with the pawl lower shaft cavity 12c and a set ofhousing cover bolt bores 24b. The bottom side of the cover 24 has a gearconnecting shaft centering cavity 24d that provides a bearing surfacefor the top of the gear connecting shaft 16a.

After the cover 24 is set into the first housing cavity it is tightenedby a set of machine screws 24 that are inserted into the housing coverbolt bores and housing cover threaded bores 12g respectively. Thehousing as well as all other structural elements are constructed of castor forged steel that has been heat treated and stress relieved asrequired.

The handle 14 which is used to manipulate the spinner ratchet wrench 10is tubular in shape and extends longitudinally from the back of thefront housing 12 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In the preferred embodiment,the handle 14 and front housing are an integrally forged and machinedcomponent. However, a design where a separate handle 14 is welded to thefront housing may also be employed.

The front end of the handle 14 abutts the exterior side of the lowervertical wall 12k and the upper surface of the handle 14 abutts theexterior side of the upper horizontal wall 12h. In the preferredembodiment, that is the non-clutch design, the handle has a singlediameter shaft bore 14a extending therethrough that is in alignment withthe spinner drive shaft bore 12f located on the lower vertical wall 12kof the front housing 12 as best shown in FIG. 2.

The bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly 16 which provides the rotationaldrive and ratcheting capability to the invention is housed in the secondhousing cavity 12b. The assembly 16 includes a secondary bevel gear 16d,a ratchet gear 16f and a gear connecting shaft 16a where theoutward/lower end of the shaft, that is the end that projects throughthe bevel gear/socket shank bore 12d on the housing 12, consists of asocket shank 16k. The socket shank is the preferred embodiment is 3/8inches (0.953 cm) however, the shaft size may be selected to accommodateany of the popular shank drive sockets. The upper end of the shaft 16arotatably fits into the gear connecting shaft centering cavity 24dlocated on the bottom surface of the head housing cover 24 as best shownin FIG. 2.

Rigidly connected by conventional means, to the lower end of the gearconnecting shaft 16a is the secondary bevel gear 16d. The secondarybevel gear is positioned on the shaft to allow it to rest and/or rotateon the upper surface of the lower horizontal wall 12i located on thefront housing 12. In the preferred embodiment none of the rotatinginterface surfaces, such as those of the bevel gear 16d and lowerhorizontal wall 12i, are treated with a lubricated bearing surface norare any self-lubricating inserts used. However, if desired a siliconeimpregnated interface surface may be used.

On the upper end of the gear connecting shaft 16a is located the ratchetgear 16f that, in the preferred embodiment, is longitudinally positionedwithin the shaft by means of a ratchet gear retaining sleeve 16e as bestshown in FIG. 8. In lieu of the sleeve a tapered sleeve may also be usedto longitudinally set and locate the ratchet gear on the shaft. Theratchet gear is rigidly connected to the shaft by cutting a shaft keyway16b on the shaft and a corresponding gear keyway 16g on the ratchet gear16f where into the keyways is inserted a woodruff key 16c. Otherattachment methods such as driving a pin through the ratchet gear andgear connecting shaft may also be employed.

The drive for the secondary bevel gear 16d is provided by the spinnerdrive assembly 18 which is comprised of a spinner drive shaft 18a havinga primary bevel gear 18b at its front end and an integral spin knob 18pat its back end as best shown in FIG. 2. The primary bevel gear 18b issized to mesh with and drive the secondary bevel gear 16d on the bevelgear/ratchet gear assembly 16. In assembling the elements the bevelgear/ratchet gear assembly 16 is initially set into the second housingcavity 12b where the secondary bevel gear 16d rests within the bevelgear/socket shank bore 12d. The primary bevel gear 18b, as best shown inFIG. 2, is then inserted into the cavity 12b and is positioned to meshwith the secondary bevel gear 16d in a 90-degree miter fashion. Afterthe two gears are in place, the front end of the spinner drive shaft 18ais inserted into the shaft bore 12a on the handle 14 through the spinnerdrive shaft bore 12f and into the primary bevel gear square bore 18e. Inthe preferred embodiment, the primary bevel gear has a radially orientedthreaded bore 18c located on the base section of the gear and the squarebore 18e that fits a corresponding square end 18i on the front end ofthe spinner drive shaft 18a. The square end 18i also has a correspondinggear retaining hole 18j into which is inserted a set screw 18d that isfirst threaded into the gear bore 18c. Thus, rigidly and radiallyholding the primary bevel gear 18b on the drive shaft 18a.

The integral spin knob 18p which is knurled in the preferred embodiment,is used to manually rotate the spinner drive shaft 18a when thethree-position pawl assembly is placed in the neutral position.

The knob 18p, as best shown in FIG. 2 is of the same diameter as thehandle 14 and protrudes slightly from the end of the handle 14. Athreaded spin knob 18g may also be employed as shown in FIG. 4. In thiscase the spinner drive shaft 18a has a threaded section 18h that allowsthe knob 18g to be attached.

The three-position pawl assembly 22 allows the spinner ratchet wrench tohave a conventional ratchet wrench capability as well as a free-spinningneutral mode. The assembly 22, as best shown in FIG. 9, is comprised ofa three-position pawl 22a and a pawl shaft 22f having a lower shaft end22g and an upper keyed shaft end 22h. The lower shaft end is sized torotatably fit into the pawl lower shaft cavity 12c located on the fronthousing 12; the upper keyed shaft 22h is sized to rotatably fit throughthe pawl upper shaft bore 24a located on the bottom surface of the headhousing cover 24. The end of the upper shaft 22h has a pawl-lever boltthreaded bore 22k.

The three-position pawl 22a has a centrally located shaft bore 22e thatis sized to allow the pawl to be inserted into the pawl shaft 22f asbest shown in FIG. 9. The pawl 22a is rigidly held in place within theshaft by a pin or other conventional means. As shown in FIG. 5, thethree-position pawl 22a has an ON detent position 22c that allows thewrench to tighten a bolt or nut as shown in FIG. 5A, an OFF detentposition 22d that allows the wrench to loosen a bolt as shown in FIG. 5Cand a center NEUTRAL position 22b, as shown in FIG. 5B. Note that whenthe three-position pawl 22a is in the NEUTRAL position the pawl isdisengaged from the ratchet gear 16f.

The pawl 22a as best shown in FIG. 8 is manipulated by means of a pawlshifting lever 22r. The lever has a pawl upper shaft keyed bore 22s thatis dimensioned to fit into the upper keyed shaft end 22h. The lever 22ris held in place by a lever bolt 22t that is threaded into thepawl-lever bolt threaded bore 22k.

The lateral pressure between the three-position pawl 22a and the ratchetgear 16f is maintained by a combination pawl detent ball 22m, adetent/ball spring 22n and a spring retaining screw 22p. The pawl detentball is sized to slideably fit into the pawl detent bore 12e located onthe front housing 12 and into one of the selectable three pawl detents22b, 22c, or 22d. The detent/ball spring 22n is likewise sized toslideably fit into and to compressively hold the pawl detent ball 22mwithin the pawl ball-detent bore. After the ball and spring are insertedthe spring retaining screw 22p is threaded into the threaded pawlball-detent bore to compressively hold the elements. The tension on theball 22m which, in turn, controls the pawl/ratchet gear pressure, ispermanently set at the time the wrench is manufactured. However, ifnecessary it may be adjusted by threading the spring retaining screw 22pin and out as desired.

The generic spinner ratchet wrench 10 as previously described may bemodified by the inclusion of the clutch assembly 20 which allows acombination back clutch plate spin knob 20c to be manually rotated untilthe nut or bolt becomes finger tight at which point the clutch will slipand will rotate without imparting any further torque to the nut or bolt.When this slippage occurs, it is an indication to the user that theratchet section of the wrench should be used to complete the tighteningby switching the pawl shifting lever 22r to the ON position. Theincorporation of the clutch assembly 20 requires changes to the handle14, the spinner drive shaft 18a, and the spin knob 18p.

The handle 14 in this embodiment requires that a clutch plate cavity 14cbe included at the lower end of the handle as best shown in FIGS. 6 and7.

The spinner drive assembly 18 has a similar front configuration aspreviously described. However, the back section includes a largerdiameter disk that serves as the forward clutch plate 20a. The backsideof the forward clutch plate has a female detent 20b near the clutch'splate perimeter as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. Integrally extending from thebackside of the forward clutch plate 20a is a centrally located clutchshaft 20e that has at its end a retaining bolt threaded bore 20k.

The combination back clutch plate spin knob 20c, as shown in FIGS. 6, 7and 9 in its preferred embodiment, has on its front side a male detent20d located and sized to fit into the female detent 20b located on theforward clutch plate 20a. The back clutch plate also includes a clutchshaft bore 20j as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, having a diameter slightlygreater than that of the clutch shaft 20e; and a clutch spring cavity20g extending from its backside. An alternate male detent configurationemploying a back clutch plate spin knob having a groove 20m, as shown inFIG. 8, which loosely retains a stainless steel ball 20n may also beused.

The back clutch plate spin knob 20c is compressively held against theforward clutch plate 20a by a clutch spring 20f that is inserted overthe clutch shaft 20e and within the clutch spring cavity 20g. The spring20f is held in compression by the shaft/clutch retaining bolt 20i thatis threaded into the threaded bore 20k located on the clutch shaft 20e.

The clutch in the engaged position is shown in FIG. 6. When the clutchis engaged and the three-position pawl 22a is placed in the NEUTRALposition the back clutch plate spin knob 20c may be rotated to apply adirect power transfer from the knob to the nut or bolt being tightened.Conversely, when the rotational torque exceeds the clutch's holdingtorque, the clutch will disengage as shown in FIG. 7 and the back clutchplate spin knob will continue to rotate pass the detents 20b, 20dwithout imparting any torque to the socket shank 16k.

An alternate friction-plate clutch configuration (not shown) can also beused in lieu of the detent configuration used in the above describedclutch assembly 20. In this alternate configuration, a friction plate(clutch) is sandwiched between a modified forward clutch plate 20a andback clutch plate/spin knob 20c. The amount of torque produced by theplate is controlled by the amount of tension produced by the spring 20f.

OPERATION

The spinner drive wrench 10 can be used as either a conventional twoposition ratchet wrench or as a wrench having a manually controlledfree-spinning shank drive. To use the wrench 10 in the free-spinningmode all that is required is to set the pawl shifting lever 22r in thecenter NEUTRAL position. In this position, the three-position pawl 22ais disengaged from the ratchet gear 16f which allows the spinner driveshaft 18a to be freely rotated by manually rotating the spin knob 18f.This inventive feature allows the wrench user to quickly pre-tighten anut or bolt prior to final torqueing or to quickly loosen and remove thenut or bolt after it is initially loosened. The free-spinning mode isparticularly useful when such nuts or bolts are located in areas wherefinger manipulation may be difficult or impossible.

While the invention has been described in complete detail andpictorially shown in the accompanying drawings, it is not to be limitedto such details, since many changes and modifications may be made to theinvention without departing from the spirit and the scope thereof.Hence, it is described to cover any and all modifications and formswhich may come within the language and scope of the claims.

I claim:
 1. A spinner ratchet wrench comprising:A. a front housingfurther comprising:(1) a first housing cavity extending normal to thelongitudinal axis of said spinner ratchet wrench with said first cavitybottom surface having a set of housing cover threaded bores, (2) asecond housing cavity having an upper horizontal wall, a lowerhorizontal wall, an upper vertical wall and a lower vertical wall wheresaid second cavity extends below said first cavity normal to thelongitudinal axis of said spinner ratchet wrench where said secondhousing cavity further comprises:(a) a pawl lower shaft cavity extendingnormal through said upper horizontal wall, (b) a level gear/socket shankbore/cavity extending normal through said lower horizontal wall, (c) apawl ball-detent bore extending normal through the upper vertical wall,and (d) a spinner drive shaft bore extending normal through the lowervertical wall, B. a head housing cover dimensioned to flushly andtightly fit into said first housing cavity with said cover having a pawlupper shaft bore in alignment with said pawl lower shaft cavity, havinga set of housing cover bolt bores in alignment with said set of housingcover threaded bores located on said front housing, a set of machinescrews that fit into the housing cover threaded bolt bores, and withsaid bottom side of said housing cover having a gear connecting shaftcentering cavity, C. a handle extending longitudinally from the back ofsaid front housing with front end of said handle abutting the exteriorside of said vertical wall and upper surface of said handle butting theexterior side of said upper horizontal wall and with said handle havinga shaft bore therethrough that is in alignment with said spinner driveshaft bore, D. a bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly housing within saidsecond housing cavity where said bevel gear/ractchet gear assemblyfurther comprises:(1) a gear connecting shaft where outward/lower end ofsaid shaft consists of a socket shank that extends through the bevelgear/socket shank bore on said front housing and where upper endrotatably fits into the gear connecting shaft centering cavity in saidhead housing cover, (2) a secondary bevel gear rigidly connected tolower end of gear connecting shaft and positioned on said shaft to allowsaid gear to rotatably rest on upper surface of said lower horizontalwall of said front housing, (3) a ratchet gear having means to benon-rotatably connected to the upper section of said gear connectingshaft and means to be longitudinally positoned within said gearconnecting shaft, E. a spinner drive assembly inserted into the shaftbore on said handle and through said spinner drive shaft bore on saidfront housing where said spinner assembly comprises:(1) a spinner driveshaft having a front end and a back end, (2) a primary gear having meansto be rigidly attached to front end of said spinner drive shaft wheresaid primary bevel gear is positioned and sized to mesh with thesecondary bevel gear on said bevel gear/ratchet gear assenbly, (3) aspin knob integrally located at the back end of said spinner drive shaftwhere knob protrudes slightly from the end of handle, F. athree-position pawl assembly comprising:(1) a pawl shaft having a lowershaft end and an upper keyed shaft end where the lower shaft end issized to rotatably fit into said pawl lower shaft cavity located on saidfront housing and where upper keyed through the pawl upper shaft bore onsaid head housing cover and with said upper shaft end having apawl-lever bolt threaded bore therein, (2) a three-position pawl havinga shaft bore there-through sized to be inserted into said pawl shaft andhaving means to be rigidly held within said shaft, where said pawl hasan ON detent position, an OFF detent position, and a center NEUTRALposition where when said pawl is in the neutral position, it isdisengaged from the ratchet gear, (3) a pawl shifting lever having apawl upper shaft keyed bore dimensioned to fit into the upper keyedshaft end on said pawl shaft where said lever is held in place by alever bolt that is threaded into the pawl-lever bolt threaded bore, (4)a pawl detent ball sized to slideably fit into the pawl detent bore onsaid front housing and into one of the three detents on said threeposition pawl assembly, (5) a detent/ball spring sized to slideably fitinto and hold the pawl detent ball within the pawl ball-detent bore, (6)a spring retaining screw sized to fit into the threaded pawl ball-detentbore to compressively hold the detent/ball spring.
 2. The spinnerratchet wrench as specified in claim 1 wherein said front housing andsaid handle are constructed of a single integral piece.
 3. The spinnerratchet wrench as specified in claim 1 wherein said means to rigidlyconnect said ratchet gear to upper section of said gear connecting shaftis accomplished by having a shaft keyway on said gear connecting shaftand a corresponding gear keyway on said ratchet gear into which keywaysis inserted a woodruff key.
 4. The spinner ratchet wrench as specifiedin claim 1 wherein said means to longitudinally position said ratchetgear within said gear connecting shaft is accomplished by inserting intosaid shaft a ratchet gear retaining sleeve.
 5. The spinner ratchetwrench as specified in claim 1 wherein said primary bevel gear isrigidly attached to front end of said spinner drive shaft by employing abevel gear having a radially oriented gear threaded bore therethroughinto which is threaded a setscrew that makes contact with the surface ofsaid spinner drive shaft.
 6. The spinner ratchet wrench as specified inclaim 1 wherein said spinner drive shaft has a threaded section at itsback end onto which is attached a compatible threaded spin knob.
 7. Animproved spinner ratchet wrench comprising:A. a front housing furthercomprising:(1) a first housing cavity extending normal to thelongitudinal axis of said spinner ratchet wrench with said first cavitybottom surface having a set of housing cover threaded bores, (2) asecond housing cavity having an upper horizontal wall, a lowerhorizontal wall, an upper vertical wall and a lower vertical wall wheresaid second cavity extends below said first cavity normal to thelongitudinal axis of said spinner ratchet wrench where said secondhousing cavity further comprises:(a) a pawl lower shaft cavity extendingnormal through said upper horizontal wall, (b) a bevel gear/socket shankbore/cavity extending normal through said lower horizontal wall, (c) apawl ball-detent bore extending normal through the upper vertical wall,and (d) a spinner drive shaft bore extending normal through the lowervertical wall, B. a head housing cover dimensioned to flushly andtightly fit into said first housing cavity and with said cover having apawl upper shaft bore in alignment with said pawl lower shaft cavity andalso having a set of housing cover bolt holes in alignment with said setof housing cover threaded bores located on said front housing, with saidbottom side of said housing cover having a gear connecting shaftcentering cavity, C. a handle extending longitudinally from the back ofsaid front housing with front end of said handle abutting the exteriorside of said lower vertical wall and upper surface of said handleabutting the exterior side of said upper horizontal wall and with saidhandle having a shaft bore therethrough that is in alignment with saidspinner drive shaft bore, and with back of handle having a clutch platecavity, D. a bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly housed within said secondhousing cavity where said bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly furthercomprises:(1) a gear connecting shaft where outward/lower end of saidshaft consists of a socket shank that extends through the bevelgear/socket shank bore on said front housing and where upper endrotatably fits into gear connecting shaft centering cavity in said headhousing cover, (2) a secondary bevel gear positioned longitudinallywithin the lower end of said gear connecting shaft to allow said gear torotatably rest on upper surface of said lower horizontal wall of saidfront housing, (3) a ratchet gear having means to be non-rotatablyconnected to the upper section of said gear connecting shaft and meansto be longitudinally positioned within said gear connecting shaft, E. aspinner drive assembly inserted into the shaft bore on said handle andthrough said spinner drive shaft bore on said front housing where saidspinner drive assembly comprises:(1) a spinner drive shaft having afront end and a back section, (2) a primary bevel gear having means tobe rigidly attached to front end of said spinner drive shaft where saidprimary bevel gear is positioned and sized to mesh with the secondarybevel gear on said bevel gear/ratchet gear assembly, (3) a clutchassembly comprising:(a) a forward clutch plate that is an integral partof the back section of said spinner drive shaft, with back side of saidforward clutch plate having a female detent near the clutch plateperimeter, (b) a clutch integrally extending from the back side of saidforward clutch plate with end of said shaft having a retaining boltthreaded bore, (c) a combination back clutch plate spin knob having onits front side a male detent located and sized to fit into the femaledetent on the forward clutch plate and also having a clutch shaft boretherethrough and a clutch spring cavity extending from its back side,(d) a clutch spring inserted over the clutch shaft within the clutchspring cavity, (e) a shaft/clutch retaining bolt that is sized tocompressively hold the clutch spring when said bolt is threaded into thethreaded bore on said clutch shaft, F. a three-positioned pawl assemblycomprising:(1) a pawl shaft having a lower shaft end and an upper keyedshaft end where the lower shaft end is sized to rotatably fit into saidpawl lower shaft cavity located on said front housing and where upperkeyed shaft end is sized to rotatably fit through the pawl uppper shaftbore on said head housing cover and with said upper shaft end having apawl-lever bolt threaded bore therein, (2) a three-position pawl havinga shaft bore therethrough sized to be inserted into said pawl shaft andhaving means to be rigidly held within said shaft, where said pawl hasan ON detent position, an OFF detent position, and a center NEUTRALdetent position where when said pawl is in the neutral position, it isdisengaged from the ratchet gear, (3) a pawl shifting lever having apawl upper shaft keyed bore dimensioned to fit into the upper keyedshaft end on said pawl shaft where said lever is held in place by alever bolt that is threaded into the pawl-lever bolt threaded bore, (4)a pawl detent ball sized to slideably fit into the pawl detent bore onsaid front housing and into one of the three detents on said threeposition pawl assembly.
 8. The spinner ratchet wrench as specified inclaim 7 wherein said front housing and said handle are constructed of asingle integral piece.
 9. The spinner ratchet wrench as specified inclaim 7 wherein said means to rigidly connect said ratchet gear to uppersection of said gear connecting shaft is accomplished by having a shaftkeyway on said gear connecting shaft and a corresponding gear keyway onsaid ratchet gear into which keyway is inserted a woodruff key.
 10. Thespinner ratchet wrench as specified in claim 7 wherein said means tolongitudinally position said ratchet gear within said gear connectingshaft is accomplished by inserting into said shaft a ratchet gearretaining sleeve.
 11. The spinner ratchet wrench as specified in claim 7wherein said primary bevel gear is rigidly attached to front end of saidspinner drive shaft by employing a bevel gear having a radially orientedthreaded bore therethrough into which is threaded a set-screw that makescontact with the surface of said spinner drive shaft.